Area towns plan 9/11 commemorations

Published 10:25 pm, Sunday, September 4, 2011

BETHEL

Procession will lead to community ceremony

The community service in Bethel in observance of the 10th anniversary of the terrorist tragedy is expected to take place Sept. 11 at 5 p.m. at the Hurgin Municipal Center. A solemn procession will form at the firehouse at 4:45, and proceed to the center for the ceremony. Plans include a welcome from First Selectman Matt Knickerbocker, silence, music, a flag ceremonial and prayers. All Bethel citizens are invited to attend and participate.

BROOKFIELD

Exhibit to honor local victims, responders

On Sept. 10 and 11, Brookfield Museum will be open from noon to 4 p.m. with a memorial exhibit in tribute to the victims of 9/11 who had ties to Brookfield. In addition, the exhibit will feature information on courageous first responders from town who went to ground zero to assist the rescue and recovery operations, as well as testimonials from residents who survived the attacks in New York.

DANBURY

Remembrance concert, wreath-laying set

The city of Danbury plans to hold two ceremonies on Sept. 11: a brief wreath-laying at the 9/11 memorial in Elmwood Park on Main Street at 9:30 a.m.; and the city's official event at Ives Concert Park on University Boulevard from 2 to 4 p.m.

The event is free, but donations will be accepted.

Carillon bells to mark plane crash times

St. James' Episcopal Church, 22 West St., has planned a special memorial remembrance during its morning liturgy Sept. 11, the 10th anniversary of 9/11.

The church's historic carillon will be played at the time each of the planes crashed that day: 8:45 a.m., 9:03 a.m., 9:37 a.m. and 10:03 a.m.

Before the 10 a.m. service, organist Martha Galie will perform "Spiegel im Spiegel" by Arvo Part, with Danbury High School junior Grace Kuell on the violin.

Special prayers will be offered for the almost 3,000 people who lost their lives on Sept. 11, 2001.

All are invited to attend.

For information, call the church at 203-748-3561.

Military museum to unveil 9/11 exhibit

"From the Beginning to the End: The Story of 9/11" will be unveiled to the public Sept. 11 at noon at the Military Museum of Southern New England, 125 Park Ave., Danbury. For information, call the museum at 203-790-9277.

Wesselmann art joins museum exhibit

Local artist Janine Wesselmann's painting of ground zero, painted after the artist visited the site a few days after the tragedy, will be on display as part of the new exhibit, "From the Beginning to the End: The Story of 9/11," at the Military Museum of Southern New England, 125 Park Ave., Danbury. Museum hours will be Tuesday to Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday, noon to 5 p.m.

The exhibit is titled "America ... Home Sweet Home: Photographs of Flag Houses Since 9/11." An opening reception is set for Sept. 11 from 2 to 4 p.m. The exhibit is free and open to the public.

For information, call 860-927-3761 or email kmlinfo@biblio.org.

NEWTOWN

Concert to include 9/11 anniversary music

In commemoration of the victims of 9/11, Newtown Friends of Music will offer a concert by Winsor Music, with oboist Peggy Pearson. It will feature a new piece of music composed for this solemn occasion.

The concert is set for Sept. 11 at 3 p.m. at Edmond Town Hall, 45 Main St., Newtown. The program will also include works by Mozart, Bach and Mendelssohn. An informal reception will follow.

A memorial service is set for Sept. 11 at 8:15 a.m. on the site of the American flag memorial painted on six maple trees within the driveway on the property of Newtown benefactor Howard Lasher on Dodgingtown Road at the Newtown-Bethel border.

Speakers, clergy, veterans, Boy Scouts and the Newtown High School choir are expected to participate. The public is welcome.

Public service at Sandy Hook fire station

Local and state officials have been invited to attend a public 9/11 observance scheduled for Sept. 11 at 8:30 a.m. at the Sandy Hook Volunteer Fire and Rescue Co., 18-20 Riverside Road in the Sandy Hook section of Newtown. For information, call 203-270-4392.

NEW FAIRFIELD

Exhibit, music, plaque

to honor victims

A 9/11 exhibit at the New Fairfield Town Hall on Brush Hill Road honors everyone who perished on Sept. 11, 2001, including three former New Fairfield residents.

The exhibit is open Monday to Thursday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Friday from 8:30 a.m. to noon. On Sept. 11 the exhibit will be open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Also on Sept. 11, musicians will perform as a tribute in the town center from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. At 6 p.m., Friends of the New Fairfield Senior Center will host a coffee hour. At 7 p.m., there will be a ceremony to remember those who perished.

NEW MILFORD

Service scheduled for town's memorial site

The public is invited to attend the town's 9/11 ceremony on Sept. 11, the 10th anniversary of the 2001 tragedies. It will begin at 8:48 a.m. with a bell toll at the 9/11 memorial site, in the Patriots Way Plaza behind the railroad station parking area.

Those participating in the service are asked to begin assembling at 8 a.m.

It will feature readings by local authors of their own work. Writers must submit the work by Friday to Sall Tornow, New Milford Public Library, 24 Main St., New Milford, CT 06776.

For information, call 860-355-1191, ext. 203.

REDDING

Town plans parade

and program

The town of Redding has planned a parade for Sept. 11 from 5 to 7 p.m. It starts at the Redding Elementary School on Lonetown Road and ends at the green at 100 Hill Road. A memorial program will follow. Musicians will donate their time to play a 45-minute concert afterward.

RIDGEFIELD

Town's 9/11 monument will be unveiled

The public is invited by the town and the September 11 Memorial Committee to the monument unveiling and memorial ceremony Sept. 11 at 6:30 p.m. at the monument, 195 Danbury Road.

A program to honor the Connecticut victims of the twin yowers terrorist attacks will take place Sept. 11 beginning at 8:46 a.m., the time of the attack on the North Tower at Memorial Park near the Southbury Senior Center. The name of each victim will be read, a bell will be rung, and a small flag will be retired in their memory. Volunteer readers are needed.

FAIRFIELD COUNTY

Ride expected to be state's largest tribute

Members of Danbury Professional Firefighters Local 801 will be among the participants in the CT United Ride, the state's largest 9/11 tribute, which will take place Sept. 11.

The ride starts in Norwalk and goes 60 miles through Fairfield County, ending at the beach in Bridgeport. Motorcyclists will ride through 11 towns with no stops escorted by police, ending with a 5-mile parade through Bridgeport.